Blood Knight
by Senrda Tulrumn
Summary: Rio's reaction in Nipton is just a bit violent. Also Boxcar cannot stop cursing up more than a drunken injured sailor. It's kind of a prequel to everything (in Vegas) and I hope it gives some insight on to why he acts like he does. Side note, I intended to have Vulpes find and kill Turner after she escaped. But I ended up liking her spunk and couldn't do it.


This went all over the place... But I felt the odd need to convey that Rio in battle runs and dismember foes and loves it, Rio at tends to be at best semi-mentally stable. Over all he's just unhinged and sees himself as a bad person in a way because he does like to kill people, but still loves to kill. He's not a completely incompetent studding nerd with no skills...Then this happened... It's kind of a prequel to everything (in Vegas) and I hope it gives some insight on to why he acts like he does.

 _ **More translations?!**_ I know, but I swear on the falloutkinkmeme site it works better.

 **Latin translations**

"Nemo iudex in causa sua."- no one should be a judge in his own cause)

Redde Caesari quae sunt Caesaris, hic cadavera vero innumera eius Futatrixi! -Give to Caesar what is Caesars, the truly countless bodies of his bitches.

 **Translations of Rio's tribal language**

Hypocritie: hypocrite hypocrisy hypocrites

Itai: Ow

You'iri: your/ you're/you are

Soto-wa: without

Tattobo: honor

Qu si: Die and go to hell!

* * *

It's a hot day, but that's not what's bothering Rio. The smell of burning flesh that the wind carries is what's bothering him. He holds a throwing knife at the ready. _Not too sure what happened, but considering the height of the smoke and the smell of burning human flesh...It can't be good. When the "lottery winner" comes he almost throws a knife into his jugular vein, mistaking him for an attacker. When he mentioned the Legion Rio's head throbbed. iThe smell; This smell of firewood, human flesh blood and death... it has a vague connection to the Legion. Latin words were spoken; no shouted but it's only reminiscent smell and people shouting in Latin... It's hardly a memory it's just a fucking damn taunting echo! Fucking hell, why can't I remember?!_

"Fucking Benny… The least you could do when you shoot someone is a double tap... If you're going to kill me, at least make sure I die you fuck nut." Rio muttered as he ground his teeth; as the lottery winner kept on hooting and howling as he ran completely happy for now. _No doubt the grief and survivor's guilt will set in later._ Rio thought as he looked back at the winner for a moment before continued.

Walking down the main path into town wasn't the brightest idea in hindsight. The a group of five Legionaries and three of their dogs attested to that. _Kill, kill slowly, good god that's a large mallet. What the fuck did you do play human whack-a-molerat? Better kill malletman first. Iyah you're a smug talkative sociopathic murderer aren't you? Note to self...torture dog hat to death..._ Rio's thought coldly; barely listening to Vulpes monotonous speech about how purging this town of sin was a justified massacre. Rio palmed the throwing knife hiding it as he silently initiated v.a.t.s.

"I will spare you life, so that you may spread the word of what transpired here." Vulpes said his cold, quiet tone never wavered. "Nemo iudex in causa sua."

Rio muttered glared at Vulpes before he broke into a menacing grin. "I think I'd rather spread news of your deaths. Redde Caesari quae sunt Caesaris, hic cadavera vero innumera eius Futatrixi!"

Vulpes was mildly irked. _That a Profligate would not only refused my generous offer of sparing his life is odd. but it's a bit vexatious that a Profligate managed to speak Latin better than some of my men._

The first knife flew into the hand of mallet-man followed by one to his jugular vein. Blood sprayed onto Rio's face he licked his lips the salty metallic taste never ceased to bring his warped and twisted bloodlust. Right now in a battle, he doesn't mind no he loves this part. Deep down that dark bloodlust battle crazed part of him loves it all this. It's the aftermath, knowing just how many you killed that never ceases to bother him.

Rio threw the third knife; it spun out less tightly than Rio would have liked but it his his intended target well enough to partially lodge into his patella allotting Rio a bit more time dodge. Rio forgot about the the other legionaries on the other side and one of them hit him with what felt like either a powerfist or a battering ram. "Fuck!" He wheezed as he felt and heard his ribs crack. Rio fell down into the dirt and gasped for air. He was thankful his bad luck didn't decide to show its head, a hit like that to the spine could be debilitating. Buckshot was embedded into his leg but he didn't even noticed he'd been shot until he fell. _Itai, Itai, Itai... Shit!_ Rio rolled and managed to avoid being decapitated by Vulpes ripper instead it cut deep into his shoulder. i Gotta think! Gotta move and think, defend, fuck! I'm losing a lot of blood! /i Thought Rio.

Vulpes watched a the profligate dodged his finishing blow. But it was what the profligate did next that was interesting. He performed a handstand and kicked one of his men in the face before he stood up to resume fighting. _What a barbaric, imbecilic and hazardous move to make. He must be desperate._ Vulpes observed.

Rio grabbed his kitchen knife slit a dog's throat open as it bit his Pipboy. It made a heartbreaking whimper as it died. Rio turned towards Vulpes slashed his face, Rio didn't bother to look at the damage; Vulpes felt the knife cut into his forehead and down his cheek. _Rather amazing, to find such a challenging opponent that looks like such a weakling, had I not been wearing sunglasses the profligate might have blinded me._ Vulpes thought as he aimed to disembowel the profligate. Rio ducked as Vulpes tried to cut him open or in half, who knew for sure. "To slow! Can't hit much with that slow mini chainsaw! Seems like you have problems hitting a moving target. What's wrong? Can't kill something if it's not tied to a cross?!" Rio taunted. "Hardly, I merely enjoy toying with my enemies in battle." Vulpes laughed. "Then... We have something in common after all." Rio said with a battle crazed grin.

Rio tried to cut the other legionary and he missed he was starting to slow down. _Fucking shit! I'm getting dizzy and I'm really cold too... Fucking hell, my body going to give out at this rate! Have to escape...I can't kill them all without not bleed to death afterwards!_ Rio panicked and then thought of a way out. He dove down shoved his knife up the skirt of a legionary the knife went between the pubic arch into the public symphysis Rio left it in as he ducked under the legionary's legs glad that the Legionary was only raining blood down on him and not bodily fluids on him. Rio stood behind dying man and used his body as a shield. He backed away into an ally and proceeded to dig in his pack as he took cover by a dumpster he found a frag grenade and threw it in the confusion and panic caused by the flying shrapnel Rio took his Stealth Boy he bought just for emergency escapes. He knew the repercussions of overuse but desperate times called for desperate measures.

Rio snuck out hidden by the stealth-field technology. He broke out into a quiet sprint putting pressure on his shoulder, he was losing too much blood far too fast and was starting to get rather dizzy; He reached an intact building, Nipton General Store.

Vulpes cursed as the smoke and dust cleared he held his left side he received a great deal of the shrapnel in. Even in pain he remained ever poised. He commanded his men. "Regroup, fan out and search for the profligate, if possible bring him to me alive. I'd like the pleasure of gutting himself." T _hat a single profligate actually managed to injure me. What an interesting turn of events._ "Run and hide whilst you still can, sooner or later I'll find you...I always do." Vulpes said with a smile, it's been sometime since he'd found a worthy opponent and he finds himself looking forward to killing him. Vulpes signaled a scout to send for the healer to see to his wounds.

Rio fell to the ground in exhaustion and he shut the door behind him."Goddammit, I was nodding off until you barged in here! And I don't hurt when I sleep!" Someone shouted. "Wow, didn't expect any survivors. How did you manage to survive?" The man growled. "Oh I just sat down and had a long fucking conversation with them and asked them not to kill me. Fucking my shit ass fucking luck that's how! Got the second place in the lottery!" Rio listened as he pushed down the plunger of the Stimpak felt the warm itch of the wound on his shoulder close. "Well, that sounds like fun." Rio said sarcastically. "Fuck you man! Prize for second place was I got to live, but they beat my fucking legs with hammers. I'm fucking crippled, get it? Crazy mother fuckers smashed my legs up to shit! I'll be lucky if I can even hobble to a toilet to take a goddamned crap!" Rio hooked up a blood pack, shot Med-X into his leg then started to dig out the buckshot with a pair of tweezers. "Calm down I was being sarcastic. If you stop shouting maybe I can live long enough to help you with your problem." The tweezers he was using slipped and he jammed it into his leg. "Itai! Fucking hell!" Rio yelped as hit the back of his head on the door.

The healer upon hearing she'd been summoned ran as fast as she could to her owners side. He detested to be kept waiting. The healer was a thin waif of a teenager. She was a sunburnt freckled redhead who'd had her long strawberry hair had been sheared off because "It's a sign of your overwhelming hubris." according Vulpes. The healer had once to be called Turner was now Vulpes personal battle healer her name inconsequential, so no one in the legion bothered to remember it. Turner is smart, she has a way with words and a spine of steel. She held the title of Vulpes longest living slave for a reason, she'd been tending to him for nine almost ten months; Vulpes average time for keeping a slave alive other than her was two weeks.

Turner spoke up her voice firm yet kind, just the tone her mother had taught her was expected for good bedside manners."Master, I'll need to remove your chestguard."

When Vulpes didn't say anything she reached for the straps to remove it only to have her hand caught in his crushing grip and bent her arm behind her back. "Did I give you permission to touch me? Or remove my armor slave?" He hissed rhetorically. Turner shook her head as tears welled up in her eyes. "No master, you did not. I beg of your forgiveness. I acted of my own will, but only for you well being. I am only wish to give you treatment as a fast I can for your own health. Forgive me Master I swear that I meant no disrespect. My only wish to keep you well, you have given me an important purpose and I will forever be indebted to you for that."

Vulpes threw her to the ground. With his eyes narrow and he looks into her eyes she doesn't back down, nor does she look fearful like so many other slaves have, instead she smiles. "Without you Master my very existence would be purposeless." Turner's stomach turned with that last saccharin sentence, but it seemed to appease Vulpes ego and he let her proceed.

Vulpes never flinched not even when she cut his side open to remove the shrapnel embedded deep in his external abdominal oblique muscle. She removed all of shrapnel then began to sew him back together. She almost hummed a tune before she recalled the punishment she got for humming. Vulpes punishments were, even by other legionaries standards excessive and brutal. He made sure she never hummed or sung again, gave her seventy seven lashes and no food for two weeks. She cleaned off the blood and applied healing powder then bandaged him. She dabbed a small amount of healing powder to the cut on his face. Then he her orders off. "Go and see to the others. Remember my orders: If they can't stand on their own, leave them to die." "Yes master." The slave nodded then ran off.

Rio griped he used another shot of Med-X."The fucking bakayarou that invented this shit! If he wasn't like over three hundred years dead, I'd kill him. guess I'll just have to settle for hoping his descendants have all been killed by his invention and he has watched it."

"Hope you intend on fucking sharing that."

"But I don't even know your name and I never share the good stuff with strangers." Rio said with a small dose of humor that the man completely ignored. "Name's Boxcars. Now kindly hand over some goddamned Med-X!" Rio huffed tad bit annoyed that Boxcars could not keep his lower that a grating shout at all times. "Fine." Rio pulled off the cap of a Med-X syringe with his teeth threw it like a dart; it landed in Boxcars arm. "What the-?! You mother fucker!" Boxcars shouted. "I gave you a dose of Med-X just push the plunger down. As to the reason why I threw it...Well I'm a bit busy to walk over there and hand it to you and you seem a bit unable to stand to wait." Rio realized the after he spoke then snickered. When Rio pulled the last of the buckshot out he quickly injected a Stimpak, the Stimpak for the cracked rib hurt like hell to inject but at least he didn't have to set his rib. "I'm going to scavenge something to clean my hands with then I'll see about fixing your legs." Boxcars shrugged. "I don't fucking care if you do or don't just give me enough Med-X to O.D."

Rio went up the stairs and smiled when he saw the tub filled with clean bathwater. He dipped his hands in it. "What smells off?" Rio smelled around then figured out it was his Pipboy. "Ugh what do they feed their dogs putrid dead bodies?!" The water was tepid but factoring in how long the building original occupant had most likely been deceased meant the bath must have been very hot a one point in time. He washed blood off his hands, the foul smelling dog saliva off of his Pipboy and turned on the radio. Don't Fence Me In by Roy Rogers was in the midst of playing.

When the song ended and Stars of the Midnight Range started to play Rio rushed to turn the radio off. "Hate that song with a burning passion!"

Turner glanced around the ruins she'd seen so many of Vulpes victims that the culling of the town seemed rather humane. She walked past a dying Legionary had to ignore one crying for her to help him as he bled out on the ground. She looked down the streets and spotted a Legionary riddled shrapnel and a broken arm he most likely wouldn't make it, not with the healing items they allotted but at least he was well enough to stand. She held the knife in the fire they'd burned the mayor in not to long ago to re-sterilize it. She pulled shrapnel out of him with her fingers and the young Legionary shouted out and shoved her away. She landed on her back, her neck and slave collar hit a burnt human skull; the slave collar beeped for a moment as Turner stood back up. "Shhh, shhh, I know it hurts, but you will be okay. You just need trust me." Turned went back to dig the shrapnel out and saw the tears leaking out the goggles the Legionary wore. She could always tell how experienced a legionary was based or their reaction to the barbaric healing practices. It made Turner wonder sometimes, if behind the goggles and face coverings was someone younger, kind and more afraid than her. It helped her live with herself; musing that some of the men she helped save, have a soul. "It might help to talk to take your mind off of the pain." She said noting he was going into shock. "Wh-what should I say?" "Whatever you like, you can tell me your name, where you came from." "My name? Is Hortus..."

 _It looks like he might faint._ Turner thought and motioned for him to lay down and the legionary obediently did so. "Hortus can you tell me how old you are?" "Um...How old you are?" Hortus repeated the question. The way he did so led Turner to think he was having problems following. "I am seventeen. How old are you?" "I- I'll be… seventeen soon...Not that I'll live long enough…to see another year…" He wheezed. "Don't worry so much. I have a very good track record for keeping my patients alive." Turner said soothingly. She had pulled the largest chunks of shrapnel then stitched them closed put healing powder on them. Hortus groaned in agony his goggles continued to leak out tears. Most of the shrapnel was gone all that remained was two small chunks and the one larger piece in between his broken bones. He reached out for her hand and tried to hold it but his hand was far too limp to. "I… want to... say…... I wish you weren't his slave… He's so hard on you…. But you're...pretty and...smart an'... kind...too good...for 'im...too good to.. be anyone's sl-" Hortus gasped then he stilled his breathing slowed down as he slowly passed away; And for the first time ever Turner felt truly sorry she couldn't help her legionary patient more. She would often felt pity for Vulpes personal playthings but never a legionary before. "This day is beyond odd." She said out loud talking to herself. She sat with Hortus on the ground holding his hand till his heart stopped.

Rio walked down the stairs then stood next to Boxcars. "Do you have any drug addictions like Med-X Jet or Psycho?" "What the-! Don't fuckin' sneak up on me like that! And what's the dumb ass questions?!" "Different drugs affect the body in particular ways. Long term use of these can cause the body to have different reactions to Med-X." "I don't give a fuck if it turns me bright purple and makes my dick fall off! I just fucking want to stop being in agony all the goddamned fucking time!" Rio rolled his eyes injected more Med-X and went to work fixing Boxcars legs.

"There You'll have a limp for the rest of your life and might need to walk with a cane but at least you can stand now." "Well whoop dee fuckin' doo." Boxcars said with sarcastic bitter cheer. "Your welcome, fuckwad." Rio replied then he stuck out his tongue at Boxcars.

Rio peeked out the window cautiously. "Can you at least tell me what hell happened to the town now?" " Ain't like I got anything better to do. Fine. Me and my crew had it worked out to kidnap some NCR troopers who come to town to get laid. Had it all worked out with the scumbag mayor. We were gonna ransom them off, keep their weapons for ourselves, a nice score. We get in position and next thing we know, we're surrounded by those fucking Legion freaks. hey dragged us and everybody else into the center of town. And that asshole with a dog on his head, he starts talking about how we're bad people! He said we needed to be punished for what we did, not all of us, but some of us. And then he gives everyone a fucking lottery ticket…" "What happened after that?" Rio asked. Boxcars retorted surly. "What hell do you think happened?! He started drawing tickets, and that's how people got punished. First up was the "lucky losers." They got decapitated - guess that's "lucky" 'cause it's pretty quick. Then came the crucifixions. Goddamn, but those went on and on and on... Third-place runners-up got enslaved. I got the fuck beat out of my legs, and the winner they let go free."

"Of course they enslave people..."There are no tyrants if there are no slaves."" _Was it José P. Rizal that wrote that or was it Harriet Beecher? No it had to be José. Iyah, I really need to stop reading more than eight books simultaneously._ Rio mused.

Once his curiosity started to make him wonder where the slaves went and if they could be freed. "What happened to them once they were enslaved?" He asked. Boxcars shrugged. "A bunch of those Legion fucks dragged them off right away. They was headed East, if you're feeling heroic." Rio laced his finger together and stretched feeling his shoulders pop and the muscles from the blow on his back twinge and spasm slightly after being hit so hard then rapidly healed they didn't not want to move and flex so far or so fast. "Well, now I feel like I need to set them free." Rio said as he slowly relaxed his body so the twinges would stop. "Don't act like you'd be doing me a favor. I don't give a fuck." Boxcars stated irately as he lit a cigarette. "You hardly seem like the type to give two shits one way or another about much other than yourself."

Rio poked around the store for few moments seeing if there was anything good for the taking. He picked up four cans of Dole Fruit Cocktail, a box of Jujubes, one can of Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup, three boxes of Sugar Bombs and five Sunset Sarsaparilla. Rio left seven bottles of Sunset Sarsaparilla on the shelves and took a pile of books because books even if a book was damaged if it had any legible pages when he skimmed them he deemed them important and took it with him. It was a bad habit of his but one he never tried breaking. Rio Stowed away his newly gotten gains and reached the door to leave. Rio paused as his hand rested on the doorknob. He couldn't resist throwing a parting verbal barb at Boxcars; he was annoyingly ungrateful and would not stop shouting. Even after he'd been so kind to treat the ungrateful asshole. "Well see you around. Or not depending on how fast you can limp along." Rio said with a grin then slipped out the door.

When he spotted a broad machete stuck in the torso of an unknown victim he took it; he had to step on the woman's body to remove it. _Fuck! This is bad karma, better offer a prayer._ "Whoever you are, Just as the sun and moon move unhindered through the sky so now does your soul. May you leave behind your worldly vessel and attain harmony of mind and spirit… I think that's how it went. Or was it may you attain harmony of mind and spirit that you may then leave behind your worldly vessel? Should have payed more attention to the rituals when I was a kid. Well the least I can do is kill her killers I suppose."

He turns around a corner and finds more legionaries and two dogs, he's torn between charging them and ambushing them. They spot him while he weighed the options. One of them ordered the hounds to attack the other charged him without hesitation. "I was just thinking about killing you then you appear." Rio laughs coldly.

One of the dogs reaches him first he kicks it away, he wants to keep the machete open to defend against the Legionary charging him because the second he attacks with it he'd be left with an opening for an attack. He dodged the second dog by jumping up onto a stack of crates. The wooden crates creaked and swayed slightly. "Cowardly profligate!" One of them shouted. "I prefer the term strategic fighter." Rio kicked an empty crate at the nearest one legionary then charged the dogs. He felt guilty now about having to kill the dogs as he decapitated one of the dogs then chopping off the right front leg off the other. _Dogs had a very limited idea of right and wrong based on their training... poor things didn't know they were being obedient to murderous men with a love of red leather skirts_ Rios guilt vanished when the Legionaries shouted. "Retribution!" "You kill an entire town! Then mourn the death of two dogs?! Hypocritie! You'iri soto-wa tattobo! Qu si!" Rio shouted aggravated. When a Legionary kicked the stack of crates Rio came tumbling down he landed on his mutant feet. Because he fell off the stack of boxes, the throwing spear that would have hit his head, missed him.

While Rio's low to the ground he sliced the tendons of of the legionaries right calf then the left before he cut off an arm. Another spear came flying by this time it hit. The spear grazed the back of his neck, he could feel blood dripping down his neck. The blood moved down his spine slowly. "Iyah! That was way too close!" Rio reaches to pull out a throwing knife only to find his pouch of throwing knives missing. "Great so up against a ranged enemy with a machete… I'm going to die." Rio hid behind a barrel and rapidly dug through his pack. "I have to have something in here I can use... Okay so I can either throw a bottle so sarsaparilla or a book. Assuming I hit him with the sarsaparilla it would cause more damage." He gripped the bottle in his hand and tried to figure out how hard he needed to throw it to make up for the shape and weight. Rio threw the bottle and it landed short of hitting his target. Three more spears flew overhead and one lodged in the barrel he was taking cover behind. "Good god! Do you have an endless supply of spears you're pulling out of your ass?!" Rio bit his lip he was getting impatient, he wanted to spill more blood; cut him apart limb by limb leaving him a headless torso for the vultures and crows to feed on.

Rio Charged, he dodged a spear. Was this a stupid idea? Without a doubt it was. But it exhilarating. To know he managed to out maneuver him when the machete sunk into his foes flesh cutting past the leather, muscles and bone to sever a hand. Then he severed his arm both legs then his head. Each blow came with more blood and a dark satisfaction.

Turner heard some of Vulpes recruits shout. "Retribution!" She peered around a house wondering if the people they were fighting was the same group that had injured her master. She found a single man standing on top of a stack of crates. She watched him as he fought. "No way, Vulpes was hurt by just one guy…If He's not crazy he could be my ticket out of slavery!" Turner thought out loud in a semi inaudible whisper to herself. She watched as the man dismembered the last foe with a blood-lust similar to that of the cruelest legionaries, her hopes fell.

Rio spotted a skeletal girl in rags hiding behind a burnt white house. He waved at her before he took his machete tucked it into the belt that had been holding his kitchen knife and he started run over to her.

Turner's never been one for backing down. _If I can talk my way out of a lashing then I can talk my way to freedom just as easy._ Turner assured herself.

"Um, Hi... It's okay now. You don't worry you're safe." Rio said and Turner had to admit for a second she been thrown for a loop. The guy was younger than she expected, barely taller than her and acted kind. He was covered in all that blood but he smiled and assured her she was safe now. "My names He Liu, but most people call me Rio; Well lately people have been calling me Six too weirdly enough. Anyway that is beside the point what's your name?" Rio rambled mostly because the girl looks like she's afraid, he'd never been good at comforting fearful people.

"My names Turner." She bows her head a bit meekly, playing along with the idea that she's a young shaken victim of legion violence. "Are you from this town? Not sure you would be with those rags though if that was the case... So a legion slave then?" Turners nodded. "Yeah I've been a slave for nine months and twenty days. It feels like decades though." Turner said truthfully with a forlorn tone before she asked "If you know how could you deactivate my slave collar?" "I can take a look at it for you." Turner thought that sentence was not reassuring in the least but she held still while he examined her collar.

"I don't think it's even on, the power is on it looks like the wire to the power supply and detonator got knocked out of place. Now how do I remove it? Is it this switch no… Not that one either. Is it this one?" The collar clicked open and Turner couldn't believe she was free. She pulled it off of her like it had been burning her and threw at as far as she could manage, it just ended up being a few inches away from her but it still felt good. Rio grinned up until the point he looked where the collar had been. "That's one hell of an abrasion…looks infected. It must have been consistently reopening." "What?" Turner touched where the collar had been and winced. "Don't poke at it! Come one I'll treat you in here. The last thing I need is a legionary spotting me when I treat your neck." he said as he opened the door the the house. Turner thinks about her options. _I could run off on my own now. Or follow a strange guy into a random house for what he suggested would be medical treatment. Mom sure as hell didn't raise me a fool I'm leaving!_ Turner decides. Rio noticed the frail former slave start to run and he dragged her into the house and shut the door.

The only thing she was slightly scared of was someone forcing themselves on her, not that she'd ever admit it. Turner had seen enough rape in the legion, but as long as Vulpes saw her as useful she was safe.

Turner slapped, kicked him even bit his hand, anything to try to get away. "Ow! Iyah! Fucking hell I'm trying to help! I'm not going to force myself on you or whatever you think I might do!" Turner glared at him. "I don't believe you. If that was true you wouldn't have pulled me into here with you."

Rio sighed and let her go and leaned on the bookshelf by the door. "I've never been attracted to people that way." "So what are you a eunuch or something thing then?" "N-No, I'm not, I just had an exper- Know what? It doesn't matter, okay. My point is I will not hurt you, I'm not that type of person." Rio drummed his fingers on the bookshelf. "Why I dragged you in here, is because if you run off on your own like you were about to in your malnourished condition a bloatfly would kill you. Then I'd feel horrible about it for eternity."

Turner berated herself. _I can't believe I lost my poise like that! Months of being strong and keeping my wits about me; The second I'm free I am reduced to a slappy little scaredy mole rat!_ "Sorry, it might be that after all I've been through it's a bit hard to trust guys now, there such a horrible male superiority complex in the Legion." Turner touched her neck where the collar had hung then whispered. "After being strong for all those months the second the collar comes off I lose it." Rio made no move to get closer to Turner, mental anguish was something he understood but he wasn't quite sure how to handle her particular condition.

They stood in an awkward dead silence.

Rio checked his Pipboy to check his vitals he forgot about that cut on the back of his neck up until now. _I'll need to find a mirror or a mirror shard to treat it. According to this the cut has stopped bleeding. Really glad Doc Mitchell gave me this, it's an amazing piece of tech._

"So Six was it, what did you mean by you had an experience?" Turner asked trying to get to know the strange man she was stuck in a house with. She noticed the shift in his posture she'd touched an uncomfortable subject. "It was a long time ago." Turner started to regain her charismatic charms. "You can tell me, it's not like I would just go and tell people, promise." She cooed. Rio shot her down. "No. My past mistakes are… in the past. I intend to leave it there. How about I give you some food and you let me disinfect your neck?"

He opened his pack and looked at his provisions. _Ugh, Cram. It's a food like substance… that counts right?_ Rio handed her Cram. She opened the pull top and dug in with her fingers like it was the most delicious thing she'd ever ate. Rio made sure to stay in directly in her line of sight. He guessed that if he suddenly startled her she might just throw the cram at him. Then he's smell like fermented pork flavored dog food. He opened a bottle of vodka he'd been hoping to sell for caps until today, now it was half gone, but as disinfectants went vodka worked better than soap and irradiated water.

"Crap I used up all the rags on Boxcars and my arm… I'll have to find something here I guess." Rio looked at Turner. _She ate a whole can of Cram? That fast?!_ "Guess you're...ravenous… I have some more food in my pack you can have some more. You should eat slowly, maybe have some water too; Your body won't be used to suddenly getting food, if you eat rapidly you will end up sick." He found an old shirt in a chest drawers and a womans purple summer dress tucked the the back. He disinfected her neck then offered her the dress. "I figured getting out of the potato sack outfit might make you more comfortable... I'll wait in here until you're done." Rio walked into the Kitchen and looked threw the fridge. _What kind of weirdo only keeps dynamite and Mutfruit in their fridge._ Rio though as he took the the contents. "I'm finished." Turner said. Rio spoke as he left the kitchen "We should head out soon before anyone notices the collar outside. I don't think if little mister fox with a small penis and chainsaw comes around again, I'll be able to defend the both of us."She laughed then thought about the injuries she had treated on her former master. "So did you really do all that damage to Vulpes? I'm just wondering, because he's not easy to defeat in battle I've never once see him lose." _Still pissed about having to retreat and lick my wounds. "_ I wish I killed the fucker!" Rio growled as he rubbed the area where the legionaries ripper hit.

S _kins rather tender like a sunburn but at least the scar is faint. The miracles of stimpaks. If I used some Wild Aloe Vera and Xander Root paste it might fade even more and the new skin would stop feeling so tender and itchy._ Rio sighed. "But no, we fought to a draw. I had to make a tactical retreat, couldn't have killed him without bleeding to death soon afterwards. That Fucking chainsaw! Next time I see him I'll gut him with it."

* * *

 **EPILOGUE**

* * *

They left Nipton shortly there after Rio did double back to free some captured slaves in a legion camp, they ended up being some very grateful Boomers. Rio wonders why only the Boomers survived. They traveled together and they met a sniper named Boone in a Dinosaur. Turner convinced the Sniper to trust them and to come with them to kill legionaries. Turner tried and for the most part failed to teach Rio that you could not talk everyone into doing things by bombarding them with facts and science. But after a week he picked a few things up.

They had a scare with a legionary assassination squad and in the end Turner decided she'd had enough revenge and didn't want to die like that. She went and opened up a doctor's office in a tattoo shop, in Westside. The tattoo shop was called Caroline's Ink shop. Called herself Caroline, bleached her hair once it got long enough. She even got good a tattoo work as well. Caroline sported green swirling vines with apple blossoms woven artfully into the design. The tattoo went along her face, down and around her neck covering the scar from the slave collar; then branched down her arm. The locals really embraced her one of them even hung a plywood board with DR. painted on it; above the shop sign so in now read DR. Caroline's Ink Shop.

Her old friends would visit her from time to time, Rio would cheerfully yell. "Doctor Caroline!" Whenever he came threw the door. They'd talk for hours he'd give her a book or two sometimes and she'd show him the latest tattoo designs she'd done. When Boone would show up he asked questions in his own way he cared about his legion hating friend. "You okay?" and "Noticed anything off." Regardless of the fact that she now weighed a healthy weight tell her. "Eat more you need to gain weight." He'd check to make sure her Double-barrel shotgun she affectionately dubbed Lady Boom and Lucky a .357 magnum revolver were clean and working. Then Boone would leave. His visits were never that long even if he came with Rio. Her need for revenge sated Turner was safe, happy with her new identity, and wished the same happiness for the two best legion slaying friends she has.


End file.
